The Saskatchewan Roughriders and football organizations throughout the province have declared Sept. 16 and 17 as Football Weekend.
The Roughriders and Football Saskatchewan have teamed up with the University of Regina Rams, University of Saskatchewan Huskies, Regina Thunder and Saskatoon Hilltops to host a weekend of games.
The weekend will kick off with the Roughriders Lights Out Game on Friday, Sept. 16 against the Edmonton Elks. On Saturday the other Saskatchewan-based teams will square off.
The Saskatoon Hilltops junior football team will visit the Regina Thunder in the afternoon and the Huskies will play the Rams Saturday evening.
“It allows folks from Saskatoon, for instance, to come down and spend the whole weekend (in Regina),” said Roughriders President and CEO Craig Reynolds.
“Come to the Riders game (Friday) … and hopefully stay (on Saturday) and watch some great university and junior football.”
Jeff Yausie, executive director of Football Saskatchewan said the group knows how passionate Saskatchewan residents are about football.
“We wanted to give them a weekend full of the best football this province has to offer,” Yausie said.
“From our Green and White to our elite teams at the university and junior level, you won’t want to miss any of the action.”
Huskies head coach Scott Flory said a similar weekend was hosted when he played for the Montreal Alouettes.
“For 15 years (McGill football) sold out every game, that’s the atmosphere that you’re trying to create,” Flory added.
“I don’t think enough people have had the pleasure to see our games, to see university football, and I think the more people come out to it, the more they see it, the more they’ll fall in love with it,” Flory said,
Bundled ticket packages for all three games during Football Weekend in Saskatchewan will be made available to fans, with both adult and youth pricing.
There will also be special student sections at the Roughrider game set aside for Hilltops and Huskies fans and Thunder and Rams fans to sit among friends and supporters.
After visiting the Coors Light Party in the Park and taking in the Roughriders game, fans can spend the whole day at Mosaic Stadium and the REAL district on Saturday.
There will be activities going on at Confederation Park between the two games including an outdoor concert that has yet to be announced.